After an impressive season last time around, Newcastle United played found themselves back to the league they belong. However, their return to the zenith of English football has not gone according to plan and although they had enjoyed a decent start to their new English top-flight campaign, things are now pretty tough at the club.
After a passive start, they fared well and slowly come back to their regular grind. However, things have fallen apart once again for the Magpies and they are suffering from the tenacity of the English league. They are now 14th in the league. They have collected just nine of the last 42 possible points. They are still just three points off the drop zone and relegation now looks a possibility.
Their 1-0 positive result against Stoke City was a crucial three points for them with the Magpies beating their fellow struggling side and it will give them a huge boost going into the second half of the season. However, they were unable to back it up and could only manage a 1-1 draw against rock-bottom side Swansea City. The 3-1 win against Luton Town in the FA Cup will help their cause. In a league where results after each match week can send a club in relegation to the top ten, Newcastle will have to continue their fight if they wish to stay afloat this season.
With the January transfer now up and running, Newcastle United will look to seek redemption in the market after failing to register quality, new players in the summer. Rafael Benitez has made no secret of the fact that Newcastle United need new players. However, with Newcastle unable to sell their existing crop of players, Newcastle has had to deal with a stagnant squad and that has frustrated Benitez.
With the second half of the season yet to play, Newcastle United could do with a move for Firmin Mubele. The Congolese footballer who was approached by Newcastle in the summer failed to secure a move to the Premier League. The reason for it being that Newcastle could only offer a sum of £5.3 million and it failed to match the asking price set by Stade Rennais. The French side set an asking price of £13.3 million which Newcastle’s purse stringent owners refused to meet.
The versatile player who primarily plays as a winger but can also play as a striker has played 19 games this season and has scored 5 goals and set up two more. Given the quality of Benitez’s squad, he could do with a player of Mubele’s calibre but the big question remains if the owners of the Magpies will agree to spend so much on one player.
